In the November issue, we told you how Guinness World Records are set! Sometimes an official judge stops by to watch over a record attempt. He or she is called an adjudicator (say: uh-joo-duh-kay-ter.) We talked to Guinness World Record’s Michael Furnari about his very cool job.

Chickadee: Can you tell us about your job?

Michael: I travel around the world, and I verify world records. All Guinness World Records titles have guidelines that need to be followed when somebody attempts a record. And I am there to make sure all of those rules are followed properly and that a record has been officially broken.

Chickadee: How many trips do you take each year?

Michael: I travel about 20 times per year, about twice a month. But we have a lot of adjudicators that are judging records almost every weekend. Records are being attempted all the time and our adjudicators are constantly travelling and trying to verify as many records as possible.

Chickadee: What’s your favourite part of your job?

Michael: My favourite part is seeing how excited people are when they get the record. These are people who have been working sometimes for their entire life to achieve this goal. When they break a record, you see the excitement and how happy they are. It’s really cool to be able to experience that.

Chickadee: Do you have a favourite record that you’ve judged?

Michael: One of the most amazing records I’ve seen is the Farthest Distance Human Cannonball, which is the farthest distance to shoot someone out of a cannon. It was done in Tampa, Florida, and he flew for 195 ft. before landing on an inflatable pad. It’s something I never thought I would see in my life!

(Xbox and Human Cannonball Dave “The Bullet” Smith break a GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title for Greatest Distance Travelled as a Human Cannonball for the Xbox upcoming launch of “Sea of Thieves” at Raymond James Stadium on Tuesday, March 13, 2018 in Tampa, Florida. The Xbox host of the event was Rukari Austin. (Casey Brooke Lawson/AP Images for Xbox).

The movie Pandas follows the incredible story of Qian Qian, a panda born in captivity, and its release into the wild. With the help of Chinese and American scientists, Qian Qian learns how to get in touch with her animal instincts. Along the way, awesome friendships are made, too. Check out the trailer and then read my review below!

I thought this movie was amazing! I really liked the scenes when Ben (the biologist who rehabilitates orphaned black bears in the U.S.) and Rong Hu (the scientist from Chengdu Panda Base in China) go into the forest in New Hampshire to meet the black bears he has helped. It was so heartwarming to see people who live at opposite ends of the world work together to help animals thrive. And of course, it was so adorable to see little pandas play! The movie captured panda cubs going down slides, climbing trees, wrestling and more. I fell in love with Qian Qian and her journey to find her wild side! Near the end, I was nervous for Qian Qian but all turns out well for the lovable panda. This movie is definitely a must-see for animal lovers.

I got the chance to speak to the co-director of Pandas, Drew Fellman, and asked him about his favourite parts of the movie. Read his answer below!

chickaDEE: What are your favourite moments in the movie Pandas?

Drew: I love all the little scenes with the pandas, but perhaps the black bears even more! We spent a lot of time with the black bear cubs and even got to bottle feed them. I also love the scenes with the people. There’s a scene with Jake [one of the American scientists] and a girl in the village, and she’s trying to give him a high five. It’s a light moment of life that shows how engrained these guys are in the community there. I also love the shot of Qian Qian when she climbs down the tree and Jake puts his raincoat around her.

Thanks for sharing, Drew!

Check out your local IMAX listings to see if Pandas is playing near you. In Toronto, you can catch it at the Ontario Science Centre now! If you see the movie, leave a comment below with your thoughts!

Did you like the Dinosaurs at Work story in the May issue of Chirp Magazine? I loved the drawings of Dino-Mike and Dino-Bob. We asked the artist who illustrated this story, Marcus Cutler, a few questions to get to know him better. Let’s hear what he had to say!

Chirp: Hi, Marcus! Thanks for drawing the pictures for this story. Did you like drawing the dinosaurs?

Marcus: No, I didn’t like drawing the dinosaurs for the story… I LOVED IT! I’m a big dinosaur nerd, and had lots of fun making the art for the story. My favourite dinosaur is ankylosaurus. If you look closely maybe you’ll see where I snuck one into the Chirp story.

Chirp: What is your favourite thing to draw now and what did you like to draw when you were a kid?

Marcus: My favourite thing to draw has always been silly characters, which is another reason I loved drawing this story. Dino-Mike and Dino-Bob are very silly indeed.

Chirp: Did you go to school to learn to draw or did you teach yourself?

Marcus: When I was a kid I taught myself to draw using things like the Ed Emberly drawing books. Later I copied comic books. Then I went to art college in Toronto. The teachers there helped me to get much better at drawing and painting.